# US 12,759,676 B2 · Process for manufacturing a rigid aquatic floating object such as a surfboard

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,759,676 B2
- Document ID: US12759676B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/553,768
- Filed: 2022-04-04
- Published: 2024-06-13
- Granted: 2026-10-13
- Earliest claimed: 2021-04-08
- Assignees: Hexa
- Applicants: Hexa
- Inventors: Léo Bouffier
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12759676B2

## CPC

- B63B 32/59: Boards characterised by their manufacturing process, e.g. moulding or three-dimensional [3D] printing
- B29C 64/188: involving additional operations performed on the added layers, e.g. smoothing, grinding or thickness control (surface shaping B29C59/00; after-treatment of articles without altering their shape B29C71/00)
- B29C 64/386: Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing
- B33Y 10/00: Processes of additive manufacturing
- B33Y 40/20: Post-treatment, e.g. curing, coating or polishing
- B33Y 50/00: Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing
- B33Y 80/00: Products made by additive manufacturing
- B63B: SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; EQUIPMENT FOR SHIPPING (arrangements of vessel ventilation, heating, cooling, or air-conditioning B63J2/00; floating substructures as supports of dredgers or soil-shifting machines E02F9/06)
- B29C: SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING (making preforms B29B11/00; making laminated products by combining previously unconnected layers which become one product whose layers will remain together B32B37/00 - B32B41/00)
- B33Y: ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING

## Abstract

A process for manufacturing a rigid aquatic floating object including an elongate three-dimensional external profile having in total a main length extending from its nose to its tail, a thickness, a width, a deck and an underside. The process includes a) digitally modelling the floating object to be manufactured, b) producing a hollow and apertured internal skeleton by additive manufacturing/3D printing of a multitude of plastic wires that are locally connected to one another geometrically and that reproduce a three-dimensional mesh obtained in a), c) placing the result under vacuum and bonding at least one composite sheet made of fibre and resin around the skeleton forming a shell, d) applying successive fibre-and-resin layers so as to reinforce, via stratification, the shell of step c), and e) finishing the external surface of the stratified sheets made of fibre-and-resin composite by sanding to obtain the final shape of the floating object.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A process for manufacturing a rigid aquatic floating object including an elongate three-dimensional external profile having in total a main length extending from nose to tail, a thickness, a width, a deck and an underside, said process comprising at least the following steps:
a) digitally modeling the rigid aquatic floating object to be manufactured, via a three-dimensional wire mesh of an external profile of the rigid aquatic floating object,
b) producing a hollow and apertured internal skeleton by additive manufacturing or 3D printing of a multitude of plastic wires that are locally connected to one another geometrically and that reproduce the three-dimensional wire mesh obtained in step a),
c) placing the hollow and apertured internal skeleton under vacuum and bonding at least one composite sheet made of fiber and resin around the hollow and apertured internal skeleton so as to form an external shell of the rigid aquatic floating object,
d) applying successive fiber-and-resin layers so as to reinforce, via stratification, the external shell obtained in step c), and
e) finishing an external surface of the external shell reinforced via stratification obtained in step d) by sanding to obtain a final shape of the rigid aquatic floating object,
wherein said step c) further comprises of a first sub-step c1) of preparing a first sheet of composite resin constituting the underside of the rigid aquatic floating object, a second sub-step c2) of preparing a second sheet of composite resin constituting the deck of the rigid aquatic floating object, and a third sub-step c3) of joining the first sheet and the second sheet around the hollow and apertured internal skeleton and simultaneous bonding of the first sheet and the second sheet in a vacuum bag.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein step a) includes two primary sub-steps of individualized digital modeling of the rigid aquatic floating object based on collection of user parameters wherein:
a1) a user answers a questionnaire relating to the user parameters including personal physiological data such as weight and height, rigid aquatic floating object use data, physical fitness and usual surfing conditions, and external data of the rigid aquatic floating object such as the main length, the width, the thickness and general proportions, and
a2) use of a first personalization algorithm which selects, from a database of determined boards, a model most suited to the user according to the user parameters previously entered in sub-step a1) in order to carry out the individualized digital modeling of the three-dimensional wire mesh corresponding to the model selected.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The process according to claim 2, wherein step a) further includes a secondary sub-step a3) of adaptation of the individualized digital modeling of the model selected in sub-step a2) to modify a total/local density and/or thicknesses of mesh lines of the three-dimensional wire mesh according to the user parameters that the user has previously entered in sub-step a1).

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The process according to claim 3, wherein step a) includes a tertiary sub-step a4) of cutting the three-dimensional wire mesh into a multitude of parallel slices preparing for 3D printing, said multitude of parallel slices then being produced by superposition during the 3D printing step b).

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein, during sub-step c1), the first sheet is previously produced on a flat work bench then cut at a median external profile of a front board before being bonded.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein, during sub-step c2), the second sheet is previously produced on the hollow and apertured internal skeleton in order to produce a preform of said rigid aquatic floating object, then the second sheet is bonded on the hollow and apertured internal skeleton after crosslinking the resin.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the at least one composite sheet is produced by molding.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises of a first sub-step b1) of manufacturing at least two distinct portions of the hollow and apertured internal skeleton and a second sub-step b2) of joining the at least two distinct portions by bonding.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The process according to claim 8, wherein the at least two distinct portions are bonded on either side of an intermediate internal transverse rail.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises of manufacturing an entire internal skeleton of the rigid aquatic floating object integrally.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises of producing the hollow and apertured internal skeleton including a median peripheral belt and a central cellular structure comprising a plurality of polygonal geometric patterns each having wires, wherein a flat angle between two consecutive wires of a same pattern is substantially equal to 60°.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11, wherein the central cellular structure includes, respectively at the deck and the underside, a repetition of patterns in a shape of a hexagon, each reinforced by wires connecting vertices to a center of said hexagon.

### Claim 13 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11, wherein the central cellular structure includes, respectively at the deck and the underside, a repetition of patterns in a shape of a triangle.

### Claim 14 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11, wherein during step b) the central cellular structure constituting the deck and the underside are connected to each other by walls extending substantially perpendicular to the underside, according to the thickness of the hollow and apertured internal skeleton.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The process according to claim 14, wherein the central cellular structure is connected by completely solid walls.

### Claim 16 (depends on 14)

The process according to claim 14, wherein the central cellular structure is connected by apertured walls.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein material used for stratification in step c) is transparent or translucent.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The process according to claim 17, wherein the material used for stratification in step c) is a composite made of glass, linen, hemp or carbon fibers mixed with an epoxy or polyester resin.

### Claim 19 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein the material used in step b) is selected from a set consisting of recycled polyethylene terephthalate, biosourced poly lactic acid, polyethylene terephthalate reinforced with fibers among carbon, kevlar, glass or vegetable fibers, or a combination thereof, expanded poly lactic acid, expanded polyethylene terephthalate or polyamide.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein a volume of material used in step b) to produce the hollow and apertured internal skeleton is comprised between 1% and 10% of a total volume enclosed by the external shell of the rigid aquatic floating object.

### Claim 21 (depends on 1)

The process according to claim 1, wherein the rigid aquatic floating object is a surfboard.

### Claim 22 (depends on 1)

A rigid aquatic floating object comprising an elongate three-dimensional external profile having in total a main length extending from nose to tail, a thickness, a width, a deck and an underside, wherein the rigid aquatic floating object is manufactured using the process according to claim 1.